Play Euchre online for free
Euchre is a fast, friendly card game for four players in two teams, played with just 24 cards. Each hand, one team chooses the trump suit and tries to win at least three of the five tricks. Here on Kitchen Table Cards you can play Euchre free in your browser, with Walter as your partner against Rosa and June. There are big cards, a Hint button that explains every suggestion, and no time pressure.
Euchre rules · The Bowers · Making trumps · Going alone · Scoring · Tips · Euchre words · Questions
Euchre rules: how to play
In short: each player gets five cards, and one card is turned face up. The players decide in turn whether that card's suit should be trumps. The team that chooses trumps must win at least three of the five tricks, or they are euchred and the other team scores. The first team to 10 points wins.
- The cards: 24 cards, the 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King and Ace of each suit.
- The teams: four players, with partners sitting across from each other. On this site you play with Walter against Rosa and June.
- The deal: everyone gets five cards. The four cards left over go in the middle, and the top one is turned face up.
- Making trumps: starting to the dealer's left, each player either orders up the turned-up card (making its suit trumps) or passes. If everyone passes, there is a second round where players can name a different suit (see below).
- Playing tricks: the player to the dealer's left leads the first card. Everyone must follow suit if they can. If you can't, you may play any card, including a trump.
- Winning a trick: the highest trump wins. If no trump was played, the highest card of the suit that was led wins. The winner leads the next trick.
- After five tricks: the hand is scored, and the deal moves one player to the left.
The Right Bower and the Left Bower
The thing that makes Euchre different is the two Bowers. Once trumps are chosen, the Jack of trumps becomes the highest card in the game: the Right Bower. The other Jack of the same colour becomes the second-highest card: the Left Bower.
The Left Bower changes suit: for that hand it counts as a trump, not as its own suit. So if Hearts are trumps, the Jack of Diamonds is a Heart. When someone leads Diamonds, you can't follow with it; when someone leads Hearts, you must play it if it's your only Heart.
| Trumps | Right Bower | Left Bower |
|---|---|---|
| ♥ Hearts | Jack of Hearts | Jack of Diamonds |
| ♦ Diamonds | Jack of Diamonds | Jack of Hearts |
| ♠ Spades | Jack of Spades | Jack of Clubs |
| ♣ Clubs | Jack of Clubs | Jack of Spades |
Trumps rank from high to low: Right Bower, Left Bower, Ace, King, Queen, 10, 9. That is seven trumps. The other suits rank: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9 (the suit of the same colour as trumps has no Jack, so it has only five cards).
Making trumps: ordering up, passing and the second round
First round. Starting with the player to the dealer's left, each player looks at the turned-up card and either says "order it up" or passes. As soon as someone orders it up, its suit is trumps. The dealer adds the card to their hand and throws away one card face down. The dealer's partner can order it up too, and the dealer can take it themselves by saying "pick it up".
Second round. If all four players pass, the card is turned face down. Going round again, each player may now name any other suit as trumps, or pass. The suit that was turned down can't be chosen.
If everyone passes twice: with the popular "stick the dealer" rule, the dealer must choose trumps. Without it, the cards are thrown in and the next player deals. You can choose either rule under Settings.
Whichever player chooses trumps, their team becomes the makers and must win at least three tricks. The other team are the defenders.
Going alone
With a very strong hand, such as both Bowers and the Ace of trumps, the player who chooses trumps can go alone. Their partner puts their cards face down and sits out the hand, and the tricks have three cards instead of four. Winning all five tricks alone scores 4 points. Winning three or four still scores 1 point, and winning fewer than three gives the defenders 2 points as usual.
Euchre scoring
| What happened | Points |
|---|---|
| The makers win 3 or 4 tricks | 1 point to the makers |
| The makers win all 5 tricks (a march) | 2 points to the makers |
| A player going alone wins all 5 tricks | 4 points to the makers |
| A player going alone wins 3 or 4 tricks | 1 point to the makers |
| The makers win fewer than 3 tricks (euchred) | 2 points to the defenders |
The first team to reach 10 points wins the game. For a quicker game, choose 5 points under Settings.
How to play Euchre on this site
| Making trumps | When it's your turn, buttons appear on the table: order it up (or pick it up if you are the dealer), choose a suit in the second round, or pass. Tick "Go alone" first if you want to play without Walter. |
|---|---|
| Throwing away a card | If you are the dealer and pick up the card, click the card in your hand you want to throw away. |
| Play a card | Click or tap it when it's your turn, or drag it up onto the table. Cards you can't play are shown darker. |
| Trumps | The trump suit is shown at the top of the table, and your trumps sit on the right of your hand with the Bowers at the end. |
| Hint | Suggests whether to order up or pass, which suit to choose, or which card to play, and explains why. |
| Scores | Shows who chose trumps in each hand, how many tricks each team won and the points scored. |
| Settings | Play to 10 or 5 points, turn "stick the dealer" on or off, choose how fast the other players play, and the table colour. |
Tips for winning at Euchre
- Count your likely tricks. A Bower, another trump or two and an off-suit Ace is usually enough to order up, because your partner should win a trick too.
- Think about who gets the card. Ordering up gives the turned-up card to the dealer. If the dealer is on the other team and the card is a Jack, think twice.
- Lead trumps when your team chose them. Drawing out the other team's trumps lets your Aces win later.
- Don't trump your partner's winner. If Walter is already winning the trick, throw away a low card instead.
- Make a suit empty. When you are the dealer and pick up, throw away a lone low card so you can trump that suit later.
- Remember the Left Bower. Once trumps are chosen, the Jack of the same colour belongs to the trump suit. It's easy to forget, even for experienced players.
Euchre words and what they mean
- Bower
- One of the two top trumps: the Jack of trumps (Right Bower) or the other Jack of the same colour (Left Bower). The word comes from the German Bauer, meaning farmer, the old name for the Jack.
- Order it up
- Telling the dealer to pick up the turned-up card, which makes its suit trumps.
- Pick it up
- What the dealer says when they take the turned-up card themselves.
- Makers and defenders
- The team that chose trumps, and the team trying to stop them.
- Euchred
- When the makers win fewer than three tricks. The defenders score 2 points.
- March
- Winning all five tricks.
- Going alone (a loner)
- Playing a hand without your partner, for 4 points if you win all five tricks.
- Kitty
- The four cards left over after the deal.
- Next
- The suit of the same colour as the card that was turned down. In the second round, players often choose "next", because the turned-up Jack of that colour would have been their Left Bower.
- Stick the dealer
- A house rule: if everyone passes twice, the dealer must choose trumps.
Euchre questions and answers
Is this Euchre game free?
Yes. Euchre on Kitchen Table Cards is completely free to play in your browser. There is no download, no sign-up and nothing to buy.
Who am I playing Euchre with?
Walter, a computer player, is your partner and sits across the table from you. You play against Rosa and June, two more computer players. You never have to wait for other people to join a game.
What are the Right Bower and the Left Bower?
The Right Bower is the Jack of the trump suit, the highest card in the game. The Left Bower is the other Jack of the same colour, the second-highest card. If Hearts are trumps, the Jack of Hearts is the Right Bower and the Jack of Diamonds is the Left Bower, and for that hand it counts as a Heart.
What does "order it up" mean in Euchre?
After the deal, one card is turned face up. Saying "order it up" tells the dealer to pick that card up, which makes its suit trumps. Your team then has to win at least three of the five tricks. When the dealer takes it, they say "pick it up".
What does it mean to be euchred?
A team is euchred when it chose trumps but won fewer than three tricks. The other team scores 2 points. Getting euchred is the main risk of ordering up or choosing trumps with a weak hand.
How do you score in Euchre?
The team that chose trumps scores 1 point for winning three or four tricks and 2 points for winning all five (a march). A player who goes alone and wins all five scores 4 points. If the team that chose trumps wins fewer than three tricks, the other team scores 2 points. The first team to 10 points wins.
What does going alone mean in Euchre?
When you choose trumps with a very strong hand, you can play the hand without your partner, who puts their cards down and sits out. If you win all five tricks alone, your team scores 4 points instead of 2. Tick "Go alone" before you order up or choose trumps.
What is "stick the dealer"?
If all four players pass twice, the dealer has to choose a trump suit and can't pass. It is the most popular house rule and it is used on this site unless you turn it off in Settings. Without it, the cards are thrown in and the next player deals.
What cards are used in Euchre?
Euchre uses 24 cards: the 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King and Ace of each suit. Each player gets five cards, and the four cards left over are put in the middle with the top one turned face up.
Can I play Euchre on a tablet or phone?
Yes. Tap a card to play it, or drag it up onto the table with your finger. Cards you are not allowed to play are shown darker, and the game tells you why if you tap one.
Does the game save my progress?
Yes. The game is saved on your device after every card, so you can close the page and carry on later.
Last updated